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The remains of a female toddler were found on Deer Island Thursday, a State Police official said.
A law enforcement official briefed on the investigation said investigators believe the child’s remains may have washed up on shore.
Deer Island is home to a sewage treatment plant and connects to the town of Winthrop.

Remarks of District Attorney Daniel F. Conley on Arrests in the Homicide of “Baby Doe,” Bella Bond

BOSTON, Sept. 18, 2015–Suffolk County District Attorney Daniel F. Conley today delivered the following remarks on the identification of Bella Bond, known only as “Baby Doe” after her body was found in a trash bag almost three months ago, and charges against two defendants:

“Her name was Bella.

“Based on interviews and evidence recovered pursuant to multiple search warrants during the past 24 hours, the child we knew as Baby Doe has been identified as Bella Neveah Amoroso Bond. She was about two and a half years old when she died, and a resident of Dorchester. Pending DNA comparisons are still necessary for scientific certainty, but we are extremely confident in this identification.

“85 days ago, Bella’s body was found in a trash bag on Deer Island. We hoped against hope that her death was not a crime, but the evidence carefully and professionally gathered by the men and women with me today suggests otherwise – this child, whose very name means beauty, was murdered.

“In light of that evidence, I have authorized the arrest of MICHAEL PATRICK McCARTHY, age 35, for Bella’s murder. McCarthy is currently hospitalized for a medical condition unrelated to this case.

“Bella’s mother, RACHELLE DEE BOND, age 40, has been placed under arrest as an accessory after the fact to her murder.

“Based on the facts and evidence developed thus far, which are consistent with the Medical Examiner’s findings, we allege that McCarthy caused Bella’s death, that he did so intentionally, and that he and Bond took specific steps to keep Bella’s death a secret and avoid prosecution.

“We expect both defendants to be arraigned in Monday in Dorchester Municipal Court.

“At just shy of three years old, Bella Bond was a true innocent. And the tragedy of her death is compounded by the fact that her short life ended not by illness or accident but, we believe, an act of violence in the very place she should have been safest – her home.

“Sadly, this is the case for too many victims of child abuse whose tiny voices are silenced. But we will speak on her behalf and seek justice for the crime that took her life.

“The men and women with me today left no stone unturned toward that end. Assistant District Attorney David Deakin, the chief of our Family Protection and Sexual Assault Unit; Colonel Richard McKeon, Det. Lt. Jack Lannon, and the Suffolk County State Police Detective Unit; and Chief Terence Delehanty and the detectives of the Winthrop Police Department.

“I want to thank the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children for their non-stop assistance and contributions to the case.

“And I especially want to thank the Boston Police Department. Homicide detectives received the critical tip that led to a marathon of investigative work over the past 24 hours that brought us to this point.

“I want to thank you, the media, as well, for covering the search for this child’s identity so faithfully. Every step we took as investigators was magnified and enhanced by the work that reporters, editors, photographers, and videographers put in. The same goes for everyone who linked, shared, or tweeted our calls for assistance – we could never have knocked on 50 million doors, but we had the equivalent of that reach thanks to social media.

“But I also want to note that this isn’t then end of the case – it’s the beginning. And in deference to the rules of criminal procedure, we are sharply limited in what we say at this early stage, before the defendants have even been arraigned. I ask you to bear this in mind because there’s a great deal we can’t say at this point, but before we take any questions I’d like to give Col. McKeon, Chief Delehanty, and Commissioner Evans a chance to speak.”

About the COD that Rachelle is alleging....That's absolutely horrible Though wouldn't something like that show up in an autopsy? I don't know, I guess we'll see on Monday. I'm just praying for this little girl.

Especially since she has on most likely the SAME polka dot leggings in a pic ON FB. People saw her in those... and NO ONE remembered? Really? Sorry, not feeling sorry at ALL for family/friends that didn't even question it was her.

The leggings in the picture on FB were the reverse (black w/white dots vs. white w/black dots) of the ones with Baby Doe, with smaller dots, and lots of kids wear polka dots so maybe not that telling.

Originally Posted by iamnotagolem

Honestly I wouldn't have called it in. I don't think the digital image resembled Bella much at all. There were several other missing girls who more resembled the picture that was released. The eyebrows and lips would have swayed me from thinking it was Bella. So I can't find fault with any of Rachelle's friends who didn't call it in, who possibly even shared the image on FB not realizing it was Bella.

I agree. Looking at the pictures side by side I don't think I would have made the comparison, especially when there have been other possibilities posted that looked much more like the picture. The nose, mouth and face shape were right, but the eyes, brows and hair were very different, different enough to make someone who even thought about it think it wasn't her.

Originally Posted by verbonica

I really don't think that those are today's mugshots. Bright blue background? Usually they are a gray background, or with the height chart.

They look aged from the older mugshots of the two, so unless they were both re-arrested between the prior mugs posted and now I would guess those are the current ones. Are you saying this dept. does not use a blue background normally or just that most depts don't? Because I've seen all kinds of backgrounds at different depts, sometimes even pictures taken in the same dept can look like a different background based on lighting, angle, time of day or whatever. Sometimes they are even taken in different spots depending on where/when in the booking process the pictures are taken.

Then again, many states use a blue background for driver's license pictures, which would make her smile a lot less infuriating, but then wtf is up with MM's DL pic? lol I just don't know, but I thought the source said those were today's pics.

="onley would not say specifically how her body got to Deer Island, but implied that her mother placed her there. He said evidence investigators uncovered led them to charge her with being an accessory after the fact to murder. Bond had a history of drug and prostitution arrests. In 2006, she was arrested after a car she was a passenger in was stopped for a traffic violation. When Bond got out of the car, police noticed she was sitting on a syringe. She was charged with possession of a hypodermic syringe. In 2008, she was charged in a sting operation with offering to perform sexual acts for a fee on a male police officer posing as a john.

OK, what was up with the aunt quoted in an article (in thread #3) that said Bella was about 5 years old? Everything else I've read said she was just shy of 3. I guess it just goes to show that no one really knew a lot about this poor child.

Also I would give DCF a break. To search all closed cases that fit the parameters of a girl 2-6 (going a year either way outside the age estimates originally given) would be a huge undertaking. Do you know how many cases DCF has opened and closed? I'd be surprised if they'd even have been able to check on all the children with closed cases that matched the details by now.

I am just sickened that a "mother" would help to cover something like this up and be an accessory to something so horrible. Either she's that desperate for a man, or money for drugs. I wouldn't be surprised by either. If she was getting assistance she might not have wanted to dry up that resource. If she was in public housing I am guessing she was getting some kind of benefits, which would be drastically dropped if she no longer had a child in her "care".

The mother charged in connection to the killing of Bella Bond told police her boyfriend, Michael Patrick McCarthy, punched the girl formally known as "Baby Doe" several times in the stomach, which led to her death, sources tell 5 Investigates.

The young girl the world came to know as "Baby Doe" has been identified as Bella Neveah Amoroso Bond, 2, and her mother's boyfriend, Michael Patrick McCarthy, arrested and charged with her murder, Suffolk County District Attorney Daniel Conley said Friday.

Bella's mother, Rachelle Bond, was charged as an accessory after the fact. Conley did not offer specifics on her involvement, but she may have been involved in the placement of Bella's body on Deer Island.

About the COD that Rachelle is alleging....That's absolutely horrible Though wouldn't something like that show up in an autopsy? I don't know, I guess we'll see on Monday. I'm just praying for this little girl.

LE often holds back details for good reason. If Bella's COD is what is alleged, there would likely be broken ribs; a piece of evidence that the autopsy would reveal but that only the perp(s) and witnesses would know.

You can hold back from the suffering of the world. You have free permission to do so and it is in accordance with your nature.
But perhaps this very holding back is the one suffering you could have avoided.
Franz Kafka